Conveyance apparatus, production line using the conveyance apparatus, and method of changing the production line

ABSTRACT

A conveyance apparatus includes a conveyor configured to convey a workpiece, a support unit supporting the conveyor, and a work device which performs a work to the workpiece within a conveying range of the conveyor supported by the support unit.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure relates to a conveyance apparatus, a productionline using the conveyance apparatus, and a method of changing theproduction line.

BACKGROUND ART

Conventionally, in production lines for producing food, cosmetics,electric appliances, etc., given works are performed by workersstationed along a conveyor to objects to be worked (hereinafter,referred to as “workpiece(s)”) which flow on the conveyor to efficientlymass-produce products of single type. In recent years, in order to savemanpower and improve work efficiencies, automation of works has beenattempted by installing work devices, such as a robot or a servo device,which perform specific works instead of workers.

For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a robot system including aconveyor which conveys workpieces, such as substrates for electricdevices, where telegraphic communication components are soldered inprevious process(es), and an articulated robot which performs a givenwork, such as removing a masking tape from the workpiece conveyed on theconveyor.

REFERENCE DOCUMENT OF CONVENTIONAL ART Patent Document

[Patent Document 1] WO2013/157121A1

DESCRIPTION OF THE DISCLOSURE Problems to be Solved by the Disclosure

Meanwhile, a production line having once been built may necessarily bechanged due to changes in the product, the production process, etc. Inthe production line which attempted the automation of works as describedabove, if the conveyor or the work device is moved with the change inthe production line, it will be necessary to position the work device sothat a given work can be performed to the workpieces on the conveyor.Thus, the change in the production line is troublesome.

Therefore, one purpose of the present disclosure is to provide aconveyance apparatus of which a production line can easily be changed, aproduction line using the conveyance apparatus, and a method of changingthe production line.

SUMMARY OF THE DISCLOSURE

In order to solve the issue described above, a conveyance apparatusaccording to the present disclosure is provided, which includes aconveyor configured to convey a workpiece, a support unit supporting theconveyor, and a work device which performs a work to the workpiecewithin a conveying range of the conveyor supported by the support unit.

According to this configuration, since the conveyor and the work deviceare supported by the same or common support unit, the spatialrelationship between the conveyor and the work device will not changeeven if the conveyance apparatus is moved upon changing the productionline. Thus, the production line can be changed without positioning thework device with respect to the conveyor.

With the conveyance apparatus, a plurality of casters may be provided tothe bottom of the support unit. According to this configuration, theconveyance apparatus can easily be moved.

The conveyance apparatus may include a visual sensor configured todetect the position of the workpiece conveyed by conveyor. According tothis configuration, the work device can perform the work based onpositional information obtained by the visual sensor.

With the conveyance apparatus, the support unit may include a firstsupporting part supporting the conveyor, and a second supporting parthaving an opposing surface that opposes to a conveying surface of theconveyor and supporting the work device by the opposing surface.According to this configuration, since the work device is supported bythe opposing surface that opposes to the conveying surface of theconveyor, the work device and the conveyor are disposed to line up in avertical direction, which results in reducing space in a lateraldirection of the conveyance apparatus.

The conveyance apparatus may further include a control device providedto an upper part of the second supporting part of the support unit, andconfigured to control operation of the work device. According to thisconfiguration, since the control device is provided to the upper part ofthe second supporting part of the support unit, it can prevent thatwater is poured on the control device when pouring water on the conveyorof the conveyance apparatus and a part below the conveyor to wash theconveyance apparatus.

Alternatively, the conveyance apparatus may further include a controldevice provided below the first supporting part of the support unit, andconfigured to control operation of the work device, and a waterproofcover covering the control device. According to this configuration,since the control device is covered by the waterproof cover, it canprevent that water is poured on the control device when pouring water onthe conveyor of the conveyance apparatus and a part below the conveyorto wash the conveyance apparatus.

With the conveyance apparatus, a transparent cover that extendsdownwardly and covers the work device may be provided to the secondsupporting part. According to this configuration, since a workspace ofthe work device is covered by the transparent cover, the work situationof the work device can be confirmed through the transparent cover, andit can prevent that a person's hand, head, etc. enters into thisworkspace. Therefore, safety of the conveyance apparatus improves.

With the conveyance apparatus, a handle may be provided to the supportunit. According to this configuration, the conveyance apparatus caneasily be moved.

With the conveyance apparatus, the first supporting part may support aworkpiece accommodating container accommodating a plurality ofworkpieces at one side in width directions of the conveyor, and thefirst supporting part is connected with the second supporting partthrough two pillars provided so as to be separated from each other in aconveying direction of the conveyor. According to this configuration, aworker can feed a workpiece into the workpiece accommodating containerfrom between two pillars, or can take out a workpiece from the workpieceaccommodating container.

With the above conveyance apparatus, the work device may be aparallel-link picking robot.

With the conveyance apparatus, the first supporting part may support aworkpiece accommodating container accommodating a plurality ofworkpieces at one side in the width directions of the conveyor, and thework device may be configured to transfer the workpiece inside theworkpiece accommodating container to the conveyor.

With the conveyance apparatus, the first supporting part may support theworkpiece accommodating container accommodating the plurality ofworkpieces at one side in the width directions of the conveyor, and theapparatus further comprises a visual sensor configured to detect theposition of the workpiece accommodated in the workpiece accommodatingcontainer. According to this configuration, the work device can performthe work based on the positional information obtained by the visualsensor.

With the conveyance apparatus, the first supporting part may support theworkpiece accommodating container accommodating the plurality ofworkpieces at one side in the width directions of the conveyor, and theapparatus further comprises a feeder configured to supply the workpieceto the workpiece accommodating container. According to thisconfiguration, the workpiece can automatically be supplied to theworkpiece accommodating container.

In the above conveyance apparatus, the height from a lowermost part ofthe support unit to an entrance part of the conveyor may be shorter thanthe height from a lowermost part of the support unit to an exit part ofthe conveyor. According to this configuration, when a plurality ofconveyance apparatuses are lined up, the transfer of the workpiece froma conveyor of a certain conveyance apparatus to a conveyor of anotherconveyance apparatus is ensured.

In the above conveyance apparatus, the length of the conveyor may fallwithin a range of 750 mm to 1250 mm. According to this configuration,since the conveyance apparatus is easy to be moved and the length issame degree as a range where the worker works, replacing with theconveyance apparatus provided with the conveyor with which the workerworks is easy.

Further, a production line according to the present disclosure isprovided, which has a conveying passage comprised of a plurality oflined-up conveyors, at least one of the plurality of conveyors may bethe conveyor provided to the above conveyance apparatus.

In the production line described above, two adjacent conveyors among theplurality of conveyors may include an upstream conveyor located upstreamin the conveying direction and a downstream conveyor located downstreamin the conveying direction, an exit part of the upstream conveyor and anentrance part of the downstream conveyor are arranged so as to oppose toeach other in the conveying direction, and the workpiece conveyed by theupstream conveyor may be transferred to the entrance part of thedownstream conveyor from the exit part of the upstream conveyor.

A method of changing a production line according to another aspect ofthe present disclosure is provided, which is the method of changing theproduction line from a first production line provided with firstconveyance apparatuses into a second production line having a differentconfiguration. The method includes the step of replacing the firstconveyance apparatus of the first production line with a secondconveyance apparatus. The first conveyance apparatus is the conveyanceapparatus of claim 1, the first production line has a plurality ofconveyors, at least one of the plurality of conveyors of the firstproduction line is a conveyor provided to the first conveyanceapparatus, and the second conveyance apparatus has a conveyor configuredto convey a workpiece and a support unit supporting the conveyor,without the work device being provided. The second production line has aplurality of conveyors, at least one of the plurality of conveyors ofthe second production line is a conveyor provided to the secondconveyance apparatus, and a conveyor length of the second conveyanceapparatus is equal to a conveyor length of the first conveyanceapparatus, and an installation height of the conveyor in the secondconveyance apparatus is equal to an installation height of the conveyorin the first conveyance apparatus. According to this method, a part ofthe production line in which the work device works can be replaced by apart in which a person works or a part only transferring to thesubsequent process.

A method of changing a production line according to another aspect ofthe present disclosure is provided, which is the method of changing theproduction line from a first production line provided with firstconveyance apparatuses into a second production line having a differentconfiguration. The method includes the step of replacing the firstconveyance apparatus of the first production line with a secondconveyance apparatus. The first conveyance apparatus includes a conveyorconfigured to convey a workpiece and a support unit supporting theconveyor, without the work device being provided, and the firstconveyance apparatus is the conveyance apparatus of claim 1. The firstproduction line has a plurality of conveyors, at least one of theplurality of conveyors of the first production line is a conveyorprovided to the first conveyance apparatus, the second conveyanceapparatus is the conveyance apparatus of claim 1, the second productionline has a plurality of conveyors, and at least one of the plurality ofconveyors of the second production line is a conveyor provided to thesecond conveyance apparatus. The conveyor length of the secondconveyance apparatus is equal to a conveyor length of the firstconveyance apparatus, and an installation height of the conveyor in thesecond conveyance apparatus is equal to an installation height of theconveyor in the first conveyance apparatus. According to this method, apart of the production line in which the work device works can bereplaced by a part in which a person works or a part only transferringto the subsequent process.

Effect of the Disclosure

According to the present disclosure, the conveyance apparatus of whichthe production line can easily be changed, the production line using theconveyance apparatus, and the method of changing the production line canbe provided.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a conveyance apparatus according to oneembodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 2 is a front view of the conveyance apparatus illustrated in FIG.1.

FIG. 3 is a side view of the conveyance apparatus illustrated in FIG. 1.

FIG. 4 is a top view of the conveyance apparatus illustrated in FIG. 1.

FIG. 5 is a view illustrating one example of a production line using theconveyance apparatus illustrated in FIG. 1.

FIGS. 6(a) and 6(b) are views illustrating a method of changing theproduction line, where (a) is a top view of the production line before achange, and (b) is a top view of the production line after the change.

FIG. 7 is a view illustrating one modification of the conveyanceapparatus illustrated in FIG. 1.

MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE DISCLOSURE

Hereafter, one embodiment according to the present disclosure isdescribed with reference to the drawings. Note that, in the followingdescription, the same reference characters are assigned to the same orcorresponding elements throughout the drawings to omit redundantdescription.

(Configuration of Conveyance Apparatus)

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a conveyance apparatus 1 according tothis embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 2 is a front view of theconveyance apparatus 1. FIG. 3 is a side view of the conveyanceapparatus 1. FIG. 4 is a top view of the conveyance apparatus 1. In thefollowing description, for convenience, in FIG. 2, leftward in thedrawing sheet is described as “left,” rightward as “right,” upward as“top” or “up,” downward as “bottom” or “low,” closer as “front,” andfurther as “rear.” In addition, it is described that a workpiece Wconveyed by the conveyance apparatus 1 is to be conveyed from the leftto the right in the drawing sheet in FIG. 2.

As illustrated in FIG. 1, the conveyance apparatus 1 includes a conveyor10 which conveys the workpiece W, a work device 20 which performs agiven work to the workpiece W, and a support unit 30 which supports boththe conveyor 10 and the work device 20. In the conveyance apparatus 1 ofthis embodiment, the work device 20 transfers a food product W2 into acontainer W1 conveyed by the conveyor 10. Below, when comprehensivelyreferring to the container W1 and the food product W2, they are referredto as “the workpiece W.”

First, the support unit 30 is described. The support unit 30 is astructure provided with a pedestal 31 placed on a floor surface, a firstsupporting part 32 provided above the pedestal 31, a second supportingpart 33 provided above the first supporting part 32, two first pillars34 a and 34 b which connect the supporting parts with the pedestal, andtwo second pillars 35 a and 35 b which connect the first supporting part32 with the pedestal 31.

The pedestal 31 is located at the bottom of the support unit 30. Thepedestal 31 is a frame body having substantially a rectangular shape inthe plan view, and is comprised of a frame part 31 a which extends, atthe front side, horizontally in the left-and-right directions, a framepart 31 b which extends, at the rear side, horizontally in theleft-and-right directions, a frame part 31 c which extends, at the leftside, horizontally in the front-and-rear directions, and couples theframe parts 31 a and 31 b, and a frame part 31 d which extends, at theright side, horizontally in the front-and-rear directions, and couplesthe frame parts 31 a and 31 b.

Four casters 41 are provided to the undersurface of the pedestal 31 sothat the support unit 30 can easily be moved. Moreover, three legs 42are provided to the pedestal 31, as fixing mechanisms which prevent thesupport unit 30 from moving by the casters 41 and fix the support unit30 on the spot. In this embodiment, the three legs 42 are located inundersurfaces of the frame parts 31 b, 31 c and 31 d, and are located atthe center of the respective frame parts in extending directions thereofEach leg 42 is constructed so as to be extendable and contractible inthe vertical directions. When moving the support unit 30, each leg 42 isin a contracted state so that it does not contact the floor. On theother hand, when fixing the support unit 30 on the spot, the legs 42carry out an extending operation to contact the floor and then lift thecasters 41 from the floor. Thus, the support unit 30 is supported by thelegs 42 and fixed on the spot. Note that the fixing mechanisms of thesupport unit 30 are not limited to the legs 42. For example, the fixingmechanism of the support unit 30 may be a stopper provided to the caster41, which prevents rotation of the wheel of the caster 41. In this case,the leg 42 as the fixing mechanism of the support unit 30 may not beprovided to the pedestal 31.

The first supporting part 32 is located at the center in the heightdirections of the support unit 30, and supports the conveyor 10. Thefirst supporting part 32 has two frame parts 32 a and 32 b extending inthe front-and-rear directions, which are provided so as to be separatedfrom each other, and a flat-plate part (not illustrated) of asubstantially rectangular shape in the plan view, suspended betweenthese frame parts 32 a and 32 b. The first supporting part 32 supportsthe conveyor 10 provided so as to extend in the left-and-rightdirections, at front-end parts of the two frame parts 32 a and 32 b.Moreover, an upper surface of the flat-plate part of the firstsupporting part 32 is a work plane where the work device 20 (describedbelow) uses it to work. That is, the first supporting part 32 also playsa role of a workbench of the work device 20. In this embodiment, aworkpiece accommodating container 44 where a plurality of food productsW2 are accommodated, is placed on the flat-plate part of the firstsupporting part 32. The workpiece accommodating container 44accommodates the plurality of food products W2 in a bulk or randomfashion. Note that the first supporting part 32 does not need to beprovided with the flat-plate part, and in such a case, the workpieceaccommodating container 44 may be supported by the frame parts 32 a and32 b at both ends in the left-and-right directions.

The second supporting part 33 is located in an upper part of the supportunit 30, and supports the work device 20. The second supporting part 33is a plate-like body of a substantially rectangular shape in the planview, extending in the horizontal directions. A control device 51(described below) is placed on an upper surface of the second supportingpart 33. An undersurface of the second supporting part 33 opposes to theconveying surface of the conveyor 10 supported by the first supportingpart 32. Moreover, the work device 20 is provided to the undersurface ofthe second supporting part 33. A workspace S where the work device 20works is provided between the first supporting part 32 and the secondsupporting part 33. The pedestal 31, the first supporting part 32, andthe second supporting part 33 have substantially the same width in theleft-and-right directions.

The two first pillars 34 a and 34 b are provided so as to be separatedfrom each other in the conveying direction of the conveyor 10. The twofirst pillars 34 a and 34 b are provided to both end parts of thesupport unit 30 in the conveying direction of the conveyor 10,respectively. The two first pillars 34 a and 34 b extend in the verticaldirections, and are connected to the pedestal 31, the first supportingpart 32, and the second supporting part 33. In this embodiment, thefirst pillar 34 a at the right side is connected to a right rear cornerpart of the pedestal 31, a right rear corner part of the firstsupporting part 32, and a right rear corner part of the secondsupporting part 33, while the first left side pillar 34 b is connectedto a left rear corner part of the pedestal 31, a left rear corner partof the first supporting part 32, and a left rear corner part of thesecond supporting part 33. Handles 43 which protrude rearwardly areprovided to the two first pillars 34 a and 34 b, respectively. Note thatthe handles 43 may be provided to other parts of the support unit 30.The food product W2 is fed into the workpiece accommodating container44, for example, through a space between the two first pillars 34 a and34 b from rearward of the support unit 30.

The two second pillars 35 a and 35 b are provided so as to be separatedfrom each other in the conveying direction of the conveyor 10. The twosecond pillars 35 a and 35 b are provided at both ends of the supportunit 30 in the conveying direction of the conveyor 10, respectively. Inthis embodiment, the second pillar 35 a at the right side connects, atthe front side of the first pillar 34 a, the frame part 31 c of thepedestal 31 with the frame part 32 a of the first supporting part 32,while the second pillar 35 b at the left side connects, at the frontside of the first pillar 34 b, the frame part 31 d of the pedestal 31with the frame part 32 b of the first supporting part 32.

The support unit 30 is provided with two side covers 45 which partiallycover the workspace S from both sides. The side cover 45 is a thin flatplate and is connected to the first supporting part 32, the secondsupporting part 33, and the first pillar 34 a or 34 b.

The conveyor 10 extends in the left-and-right direction of theconveyance apparatus 1. In this embodiment, the conveyor 10 conveys thecontainer W1 from the left to the right of the conveyance apparatus 1.Note that the conveying direction of the conveyor 10 is not limited tothis direction. For example, the conveyor 10 may be constructed so thatthe container W1 is conveyed from the right to the left, or theconveying direction is switchable. Moreover, in this embodiment, theconveyor 10 is a conveyor belt. Note that the conveyors 10 may be otherconveyors, such as a roller conveyor, for example. The conveyor 10 hasan entrance part 12 which is an upstream end in the conveying direction,and an exit part 13 which is a downstream end in the conveyingdirection. As illustrated in FIG. 4, the conveyor 10 conveys thecontainer W1 within a range (conveying range) R1 from the entrance part12 to the exit part 13.

The length of the conveyor 10 in the conveying direction (left-and-rightdirections), i.e., the length of the conveying range R1 from theentrance part 12 to the exit part 13, is longer than the length of thesupport unit 30 in the left-and-right directions. That is, the entrancepart 12 and the exit part 13 of the conveyor 10 are located outside arange between both edges of the support unit 30 in the left-and-rightdirections. Note that the length of the conveying range R1 may be thesame as or shorter than the length of the support unit 30 in theleft-and-right directions. In this embodiment, the length of theconveyor 10 in the conveying direction is within a range of 750 mm to1250 mm.

The work device 20 performs a work to the workpiece W within theconveying range R1 of the conveyor 10. In this embodiment, the workdevice 20 is a delta type parallel link robot (hereinafter, simplyreferred to as the “robot”). In this embodiment, the robot 20 performs apicking work to transfer the food product W2 from the workpieceaccommodating container 44 to the container W1 conveyed by the conveyor10 from the upstream side.

The robot 20 includes a base 21, a bracket 22, and three sets of armmechanisms 23. The base 21 is formed, for example, in a bucket shape,and is fixed to the undersurface of the second supporting part 33. Thebracket 22 is formed, for example, in a substantially flat-plate shape,and a work tool (not illustrated) is removably attached to theundersurface of the bracket 22. Each arm mechanism 23 couples thebracket 22 to the base 21. The arm mechanisms 23 are driven bycorresponding three actuators, respectively. Operation of the armmechanisms 23, i.e., operation of the robot 20, is controlled by thecontrol device 51. The control device 51 controls operation of theactuators according to a control program stored in a memory, therebycontrolling the positions of the bracket 22 and the work tool attachedthereto.

Note that FIG. 4 illustrates the moving range R2 of the work tool of therobot 20 in the plan view. The moving range R2 of the work tool isoverlapped with the conveying range R1 of the conveyor 10. The robot 20performs the work to the workpiece W at a given position (work position)in the overlapping part.

As illustrated in FIG. 3, a visual sensor 52 is provided to the supportunit 30. In this embodiment, the visual sensor 52 is suspended from andsupported by the undersurface of the second supporting part 33 at therear side of the robot 20. Note that the supporting method and thesupporting position of the visual sensor 52 are not limited to thestructure. The visual sensor 52 detects the position of the container W1conveyed by the conveyor 10, and the position of the food product W2randomly loaded in bulk in the workpiece accommodating container 44.Positional information acquired by the visual sensor 52 is sent to thecontrol device 51. The control device 51 operates the robot 20 based onthe sent positional information so that the given work may be performed.

(Configuration of Production Line)

Next, with reference to FIG. 5, a production line 100 using theconveyance apparatus 1 is described. FIG. 5 is a view illustrating oneexample of the production line 100 using the conveyance apparatus 1. Inthis embodiment, the production line 100 is a line for dishing up thecontainer W1 as an object to be worked which is conveyed, with the foodproduct W2 etc. as an object to be worked which is different from thecontainer W1, and the line is constructed, for example, in a foodfactory etc.

As illustrated in FIG. 5, the production line 100 is comprised of aplurality of conveyance apparatuses (hereinafter, referred to as the“first conveyance apparatuses”) 1 described above, and a plurality ofconveyance apparatuses (hereinafter, referred to as the “secondconveyance apparatuses”) 2 which are different from the first conveyanceapparatuses, so that the first and second conveyance apparatuses arelined up in a row. Unlike the first conveyance apparatus 1, the secondconveyance apparatus 2 is not provided with the robot 20. The secondconveyance apparatus 2 includes a conveyor 71 which conveys theworkpieces W, and a support unit 72 which supports the conveyor 71. Theinstallation height of the conveyor 71 in the second conveyanceapparatus 2 is equal to the installation height of the conveyor 10 inthe first conveyance apparatus 1. Moreover, the length of the conveyor71 in the second conveyance apparatus 2 is equal to the length of theconveyor 10 in the first conveyance apparatus 1.

The first conveyance apparatus 1 in the production line 100 performs thegiven work to the workpiece W by the robot 20 provided to the firstconveyance apparatus 1. Moreover, a worker M is stationed, for example,every second conveyance apparatus 2, near the second conveyanceapparatus 2 in the production line 100. In the second conveyanceapparatus 2, a given work is performed by the worker M to the workpieceW. Note that the worker M is not necessarily needed to be stationed atthe second conveyance apparatus 2, and in such a case, the secondconveyance apparatus 2 only plays the role to transfer the workpiece Wto the subsequent process.

In the production line 100, one conveying passage is constructed so thatthe conveyors 10 of the plurality of first conveyance apparatuses 1 andthe conveyors 71 of the plurality of second conveyance apparatuses 2 arelined up. Two adjacent conveyors among the conveyors 10 and 71 whichconstitute the conveying passage are arranged so that the exit part ofthe upstream conveyor and the entrance part of the downstream conveyoroppose to each other in the conveying direction. In addition, they areconstructed so that the workpiece W being conveyed by the upstreamconveyor is transferred to the entrance part of the downstream conveyorfrom the exit part of the upstream conveyor.

(Method of Changing Production Line)

Next, one example of a method of changing the production line isdescribed with reference to FIGS. 6(a) and 6(b). FIG. 6(a) is a top viewof a production line 101 which is comprised only of the plurality ofsecond conveyance apparatuses 2, without including any first conveyanceapparatuses 1. FIG. 6(b) is a top view of the production line 100comprised of the plurality of first conveyance apparatuses 1 and theplurality of second conveyance apparatuses 2.

The length of the conveyor 71 of the second conveyance apparatus 2 isequal to the length of the conveyor 10 of the first conveyance apparatus1. Moreover, the installation height of the conveyor 71 of the secondconveyance apparatus 2 is equal to the installation height of theconveyor 10 of the first conveyance apparatus 1. Thus, it is possible tochange the production line from the production line 101 to theproduction line 100 only by replacing some second conveyance apparatuses2 in the production line 101 with the first conveyance apparatuses 1.Conversely, it is possible to change the production line from theproduction line 100 to the production line 101 only by replacing thefirst conveyance apparatus 1 in the production line 100 with the secondconveyance apparatus 2. Moreover, in the production line 100, it ispossible to easily replace the conveyance apparatus(es) between thefirst conveyance apparatus(es) 1 and the second conveyanceapparatus(es).

As described above, since in the conveyance apparatus 1 according tothis embodiment the conveyor 10 and the robot 20 are supported by thesame or common support unit 30, the spatial relationship between theconveyor 10 and the robot 20 will not change even if the conveyanceapparatus 1 is moved upon changing the production line 100. Thus, theproduction line 100 can be changed without positioning the robot 20 withrespect to the conveyor 10.

The present disclosure is not limited to the above embodiment, andvarious modifications may be possible without departing from the subjectmatter of the present disclosure.

For example, the configuration of the support unit 30 illustrated in theabove embodiment is not limited to the configuration of the aboveembodiment, but it may suitably be changed without departing from thesubject matter of the present disclosure. Moreover, the arrangement ofthe conveyor 10 and the work device 20 which are supported by thesupport unit 30 is not limited to the above embodiment, either. Forexample, although in the above embodiment the support unit 30 isprovided with the first supporting part 32 which supports the conveyor10, and the second supporting part 33 which is provided above the firstsupporting part 32 and is supported by the work device 20, for example,the support unit 30 may be provided with one supporting part whichsupports both the conveyor 10 and the work device 20. For example, thework device 20 may be supported by the flat-plate part of the firstsupporting part 32 which supports the conveyor 10. In this case, thesupport unit 30 may not be provided with the second supporting part 33.

Moreover, although in the above embodiment the length of the conveyor 10is within the range of 750 mm to 1250 mm, it is not limited to thisrange and the length of the conveyor 10 may be outside the range of 750mm to 1250 mm However, the length of the conveyor 10 is desirable to bewithin the range of 750 mm to 1250 mm, in terms of the easiness ofchanging the space where the worker M works and the production line.

Moreover, the length of the conveyor 71 of the second conveyanceapparatus 2 may differ from the length of the conveyor 10 of the firstconveyance apparatus 1. However, since the change in the production lineby replacing between the first conveyance apparatus(es) 1 and the secondconveyance apparatus(es) 2 becomes easier, it is desirable to make thelength of the conveyor 71 of the second conveyance apparatus 2 the sameas the length of the conveyor 10 of the first conveyance apparatus 1.

Moreover, in the above embodiment, although the control device 51 isplaced on the upper surface of the second supporting part 33, it is notlimited to this structure. For example, as illustrated in FIG. 7, thepedestal 31 may be formed in a flat-plate shape having a horizontalsurface, and the control device 51 may be placed on the upper surface.In this case, the control device 51 may be covered with a waterproofcover. Since the control device 51 is installed at a lower location, thecenter-of-gravity position of the conveyance apparatus 1 becomes lower,thereby increasing the stability of the conveyance apparatus 1.Moreover, since the control device 51 is covered with the waterproofcover, it can prevent that water is poured on the control device 51 whenpouring water on the conveyor 10 of the conveyance apparatus 1 and apart below the conveyor 10 to wash the conveyance apparatus 1.

Moreover, as illustrated in FIG. 7, a transparent cover 46 which coversthe robot 20 may be provided to the support unit 30. For example, thetransparent cover 46 is supported by the second supporting part 33, andextends downwardly from the second supporting part 33. Further, thetransparent cover 46 and the conveying surface of the conveyor 10 areseparated so that the workpiece W is transferrable between adjacentconveyors. Since the transparent cover 46 can prevent that a person'shand, head, etc. enters into the workspace S of the robot 20, the safetyof the conveyance apparatus 1 improves. The transparent cover 46 alsoimproves hygiene of the workspace S of the robot 20.

Moreover, the conveyance apparatus 1 may be provided with a sensor whichdetects that the workpiece W is conveyed to a given position on theconveyor 10, in addition to or instead of the visual sensor 52. Theconveyor 10 may also be controlled to stop when the sensor describedabove detects the workpiece W. While the sensor is detecting theworkpiece W, the conveyor 10 may be controlled so that a paused state ofthe conveyor 10 is maintained until the robot 20 finishes the givenwork.

Moreover, the width of the entrance part 12 of the conveyor 10 may bewider than the width of the exit part 13 of the conveyor 10. Thus, if anupstream conveyor and a downstream conveyor of two adjacent conveyanceapparatuses are somewhat offset in the position in the width directionsof the conveyor 10, the positional offset is absorbable since the widthof the entrance part 12 of the conveyor 10 is wide. Moreover, betweenthe entrance part 12 of the conveyor 10 and the work position on theconveyor 10, a guide may be provided to position the workpiece Wconveyed to the work position in the conveying direction at a desiredposition in the width directions.

Moreover, the conveyance apparatus 1 may be provided with a heightadjustment mechanism which adjusts the heights of the conveyor 10 andthe work device 20. For example, the conveyance apparatus 1 may beprovided with a jack which raises and lowers the entire support unit 30.Alternatively, parts of the first pillars 34 a and 34 b below the firstsupporting part 32, and the second pillars 35 a and 35 b may beconstructed so as to be extendable and contractible in the verticaldirections, or the three legs 42 as the fixing mechanisms may functionas the height adjustment mechanism.

Moreover, the height from the lowermost part of the support unit 30 tothe entrance part 12 of the conveyor 10 may be shorter than the heightfrom the lowermost part of the support unit 30 to the exit part 13 ofthe conveyor 10. In such a case, two adjacent conveyors 10 may bearranged so that their conveying ranges R1 overlap with each other inthe plan view. For example, the conveying surface of the conveyor 10 mayincline to a horizontal surface so that the exit part 13 is locatedabove the entrance part 12. According to this structure, when aplurality of conveyance apparatuses are lined up, the transfer of theworkpiece W from a conveyor of a certain conveyance apparatus to aconveyor of another conveyance apparatus is ensured.

The robot 20 may have a base, a gripper which grips an object, and atleast one arm which couples the gripper to a robot main body, and the atleast one arm and the base may be covered with a drape. Moreover, theconveyance apparatus 1 may be provided with a component fall preventionplate which prevents that a component of the work device 20 falls on thefirst supporting part 32. For example, the component fall preventionplate may be provided within a range which is located above the gripper,and overlaps with the workpiece accommodating container 44 when seenfrom above as the gripper comes above the container W1 conveyed by theconveyor.

The conveyance apparatus 1 may be provided with a plurality ofconveyors. For example, the conveyance apparatus 1 may be provided withtwo rows of parallel conveyors, and the work device 20 may transfer theworkpiece W conveyed by one of the two rows of conveyors to the otherconveyor. For example, the work device 20 may transfer the food productW2 conveyed by one of the conveyors to the container W1 conveyed by theother conveyor.

The conveyance apparatus 1 may be provided with a plurality of workdevices 20. That is, the plurality of work devices 20 may be supportedby one support unit 30. In such a case, the support unit 30 may have onesupporting part which supports the plurality of work devices 20, or mayhave a plurality of supporting parts which support the plurality of workdevices 20, respectively. Moreover, if the conveyance apparatus 1 isprovided with the plurality of work devices 20, the plurality of workdevices 20 may be configured to perform different works. Moreover, theplurality of work devices 20 may be arranged in any other ways, as longas they are arranged so as to perform the works to the workpiece Wwithin the conveying range R1 of the conveyor 10, respectively. Forexample, the plurality of work devices 20 may be arranged so as to belined up in the conveying direction of the conveyor 10, or they may bearranged on both sides of the conveyor 10 in the width directions.

Moreover, a feeder may further be provided to automatically supply thefood product W2 to the workpiece accommodating container 44.

A plurality of workpieces W may be randomly loaded in bulk in theworkpiece accommodating container 44, or they may be placed at givenpositions, respectively, for example, the plurality of workpieces W areaccommodated into a given lattice-shaped container, respectively.Moreover, in the above embodiment, although the workpiece accommodatingcontainer 44 is placed on the first supporting part 32, the workpieceaccommodating container 44 does not need to be provided onto the firstsupporting part 32, and the workpiece W may be directly placed on thefirst supporting part 32, for example.

Moreover, although in the above embodiment the conveyance apparatus 1 inwhich the work device 20 transfers the food product W2 into thecontainer W1 conveyed by the conveyor 10 is illustrated as one example,the picking work of the work device 20 is not limited to such a work.For example, like the conveyance apparatus 1 located at the upstream endof the production line 100 in FIG. 5, the work device 20 may beconstructed so as to transfer the container W1 on the first supportingpart 32 to the conveyor 10. Moreover, the work device 20 may transferthe workpiece W conveyed from upstream by the conveyor 10 to the workplane of the first supporting part 32. For example, when the conveyanceapparatus 1 conveys the food product W2 by the conveyor 10, the workdevice 20 may be constructed so as to transfer the food product W2conveyed from upstream by the conveyor 10 to a particular space withinthe container W1 placed on the work plane of the first supporting part32 (i.e., a space for accommodating the food product W2).

Moreover, although the work device 20 of the above embodiment is aparallel link robot, it is not limited to this structure but variousindustrial robots may be applied thereto. For example, the work devices20 may be a serial link robot, such as a horizontal articulated robot ora vertical articulated robot. Alternatively, the work devices 20 may bean articulated robot having a plurality of arms, such as a dual-armrobot. Moreover, the robot as the work device 20 is not limited to thepicking robot, but, for example, the robot 20 may be a robot whichperforms a work, such as injecting, applying, etc. fluid material to theworkpiece conveyed by the conveyor. Moreover, the workpiece W may not belimited to the container or the food, but, for example, it may be amachine component, an electronic component, etc.

Moreover, the work device 20 may be a device other than the industrialrobot described above, as long as it is a device which performs theworks to the workpiece W within the conveying range R1 of the conveyor10. For example, the work device may be configured to be provided with alinear motion device, such as an electric cylinder, or a hydraulic orpneumatic cylinder. Moreover, the work device may be a servo deviceusing an AC or DC servo motor, or a hydraulic or pneumatic device.

DESCRIPTION OF REFERENCE CHARACTERS

1 Conveyance Apparatus (First Conveyance Apparatus)

2 Conveyance Apparatus (Second Conveyance Apparatus)

10 Conveyor

20 Work Device

30 Support Unit

31 Pedestal

32 First Supporting Part

33 Second Supporting Part

34 a, 34 b First Pillar

35 a, 35 b Second Pillar

41 Caster

42 Leg

43 Handle

44 Workpiece Accommodating Container

45 Side Cover

46 Transparent Cover

100 Production Line (First Production Line)

101 Production Line (Second Production Line)

1. A conveyance apparatus, comprising: a conveyor configured to convey aworkpiece; a support unit supporting the conveyor; and a work devicewhich performs a work to the workpiece within a conveying range of theconveyor supported by the support unit.
 2. The conveyance apparatus ofclaim 1, wherein a plurality of casters are provided to the bottom ofthe support unit.
 3. The conveyance apparatus of claim 1, comprising avisual sensor configured to detect the position of the workpiececonveyed by the conveyor.
 4. The conveyance apparatus of claim 1,wherein the support unit includes a first supporting part supporting theconveyor, and a second supporting part having an opposing surface thatopposes to a conveying surface of the conveyor and supporting the workdevice by the opposing surface.
 5. The conveyance apparatus of claim 4,further comprising a control device provided to an upper part of thesecond supporting part of the support unit, and configured to controloperation of the work device.
 6. The conveyance apparatus of claim 4,further comprising a control device provided below the first supportingpart of the support unit, and configured to control operation of thework device, and a waterproof cover covering the control device.
 7. Theconveyance apparatus of claim 4, wherein a transparent cover thatextends downwardly and covers the work device is provided to the secondsupporting part.
 8. The conveyance apparatus of claim 1, wherein ahandle is provided to the support unit.
 9. The conveyance apparatus ofclaim 4, wherein the first supporting part supports a workpieceaccommodating container accommodating a plurality of workpieces at oneside in width directions of the conveyor, and the first supporting partis connected with the second supporting part through two pillarsprovided so as to be separated from each other in a conveying directionof the conveyor.
 10. The conveyance apparatus of claim 1, wherein thework device is a parallel-link picking robot.
 11. The conveyanceapparatus of claim 4, wherein the first supporting part supports aworkpiece accommodating container accommodating a plurality ofworkpieces at one side in the width directions of the conveyor, and thework device is configured to transfer the workpiece inside the workpieceaccommodating container to the conveyor.
 12. The conveyance apparatus ofclaim 11, wherein the first supporting part supports the workpieceaccommodating container accommodating the plurality of workpieces at oneside in the width directions of the conveyor, and the apparatus furthercomprises a visual sensor configured to detect the position of theworkpiece accommodated in the workpiece accommodating container.
 13. Theconveyance apparatus of claim 12, wherein the first supporting partsupports the workpiece accommodating container accommodating theplurality of workpieces at one side in the width directions of theconveyor, and the apparatus further comprises a feeder configured tosupply the workpiece to the workpiece accommodating container.
 14. Theconveyance apparatus of claim 1, wherein the height from a lowermostpart of the support unit to an entrance part of the conveyor is shorterthan the height from a lowermost part of the support unit to an exitpart of the conveyor.
 15. The conveyance apparatus of claim 1, whereinthe length of the conveyor falls within a range of 750 mm to 1250 mm.16. A production line having a conveying passage comprised of aplurality of lined-up conveyors, at least one of the plurality ofconveyors is the conveyor provided to the conveyance apparatus ofclaim
 1. 17. The production line of claim 16, wherein two adjacentconveyors among the plurality of conveyors include an upstream conveyorlocated upstream in the conveying direction and a downstream conveyorlocated downstream in the conveying direction, an exit part of theupstream conveyor and an entrance part of the downstream conveyor arearranged so as to oppose to each other in the conveying direction, andthe workpiece conveyed by the upstream conveyor is transferred to theentrance part of the downstream conveyor from the exit part of theupstream conveyor.
 18. A method of changing a production line from afirst production line provided with first conveyance apparatuses into asecond production line having a different configuration, comprising thestep of: replacing the first conveyance apparatus of the firstproduction line with a second conveyance apparatus, wherein the firstconveyance apparatus is the conveyance apparatus of claim 1, wherein thefirst production line has a plurality of conveyors, wherein at least oneof the plurality of conveyors of the first production line is a conveyorprovided to the first conveyance apparatus, wherein the secondconveyance apparatus has a conveyor configured to convey a workpiece anda support unit supporting the conveyor, without the work device beingprovided, wherein the second production line has a plurality ofconveyors, wherein at least one of the plurality of conveyors of thesecond production line is a conveyor provided to the second conveyanceapparatus, and wherein a conveyor length of the second conveyanceapparatus is equal to a conveyor length of the first conveyanceapparatus, and an installation height of the conveyor in the secondconveyance apparatus is equal to an installation height of the conveyorin the first conveyance apparatus.
 19. A method of changing a productionline from a first production line provided with first conveyanceapparatuses into a second production line having a differentconfiguration, comprising the step of: replacing the first conveyanceapparatus of the first production line with a second conveyanceapparatus, wherein the first conveyance apparatus includes a conveyorconfigured to convey a workpiece and a support unit supporting theconveyor, without the work device being provided, wherein the firstconveyance apparatus is a conveyance apparatus of claim 1, wherein thefirst production line has a plurality of conveyors, wherein at least oneof the plurality of conveyors of the first production line is a conveyorprovided to the first conveyance apparatus, wherein the secondconveyance apparatus is a conveyance apparatus comprising: a conveyorconfigured to convey a workpiece; a support unit supporting the secondconveyor; and a work device which performs a work to the workpiecewithin a conveying range of the conveyor supported by the support unit,wherein the second production line has a plurality of conveyors, whereinat least one of the plurality of conveyors of the second production lineis a conveyor provided to the second conveyance apparatus, and whereinthe conveyor length of the second conveyance apparatus is equal to aconveyor length of the first conveyance apparatus, and an installationheight of the conveyor in the second conveyance apparatus is equal to aninstallation height of the conveyor in the first conveyance apparatus.